Lebanon Bids Farewell To Its First Ever Brewery: The Grand Brasserie Du Levant

Built in the 1930s, The Grand Brasserie du Levant brought with it what would soon become Lebanon’s most prized local beer, Laziza. Celebrated for decades upon decades by Lebanese and foreigners alike, Laziza Beer became one of the most popular drinks in Lebanon in the 60s and 70s.



Since then, Laziza Beer has been overshadowed by what has come to be known as the taste of Lebanon, Almaza, but also by newer Lebanese beers like Beirut Beer, Colonel, and 961.

If you’re an avid Mar Mikhael visitor, you know the building. The Grand Brasserie is true to its name, grand and awe-inspiring at first sight. Since its heyday in the mid nineties, though, the building has been slowly falling apart and has become the home place of one of current day Beirut’s most notorious graffiti art pieces, pictured below.



The Grand Brasserie will soon be demolished to make way for, you guessed it, a luxurious apartment complex. Out with the old, in with the new, as it seems is the new trend for architecture around the city.

Across the street from an old ‘Masonic Lodge’ – yes, this is true, see the picture below – and adjacent to a governmental complex where soldiers stand around holding their guns in the most anxiety-inducing ways, The Grand Brasserie could not stand the test of time in Beirut.



So if you love this building as much as we do, we suggest you pass by and see it while it’s still around. If you can get your hands on one, take a Laziza Beer with you, and make a toast to Lebanon – old and new.